Prime Minister Syarhey Rumas
Mr. Kabyakow, 57, had served as prime minister since December 27, 2014. His successor, the 48-year-old Mr . Rumas, leaves the position of chairman at the government-controlled Development Bank of Belarus to take up the top cabinet role.
Mr. Lukashenka replaced Vasil Matsyushewski with Alyaksandr Turchyn as first deputy prime minister, said the presidential press office. Mr. Turchyn had headed the secretariat of the Council of Ministers prior to the appointment.
The head of state also dismissed Deputy Prime Ministers Uladzimir Syamashka, Anatol Kalinin and Vasil Zharko, naming Ihar Lyashenka, Uladzimir Kukharaw and Ihar Petryshenka as their respective successors.
Mr. Lyashenka, who was the head of the Belarusian State Petrochemical Industry Concern (Belnaftakhim) in his previous role, will oversee the energy and industrial sectors, while Mr. Kukharaw, previously the State Control Committee’s deputy head, will be responsible for the construction, utilities and transport sectors.
Mr. Petryshenka, who leaves the job of Belarusian ambassador in Moscow, will be in charge of healthcare, education, culture and sports.
Mikhail Rusy became the only deputy prime minister to survive the cabinet shake-up. He oversees the agricultural sector.
In addition, Mr. Lukashenka appointed Dzmitry Mikulyonak, director of the Minsk City Executive Committee’s construction department, as construction minister, and Deputy Economy Minister Pavel Utsyupin as industry minister. Speaking to Mr. Utsyupin, the head of state said, “You know the sphere. As far I as know you worked there for five years. And it’s very good that you also worked at the economy ministry. This is simply great for your future work.”
Kanstantsin Shulhan, deputy head of the presidential Operations and Analysis Center, was named as communications minister instead of Syarhey Papkow. “This is a well-disciplined, military person who knows this sphere very well, particularly its development prospects connected with information technologies,” said Mr. Lukashenka.
Dzmitry Kruty was promoted from deputy economy minister to minister, replacing Uladzimir Zinowski . “One would like very much to see the economy ministry get a new lease of life and be adapted to the new realities,” said Mr. Lukashenka. “This is very important.”
Raman Halowchanka replaced Aleh Dvihalyow as the head of the State Defense Industry Committee. Speaking to the newly appointed official, Mr. Lukashenka played up his past experience as Belarus’ ambassador to foreign countries and his previous work in the defense industry.
The cabinet reshuffle comes days after Mr. Lukashenka berated top government officials for what he described as their failure to fulfill his directives concerning the revitalization of the economically depressed Orsha district in the Vitsyebsk region.
Speaking at a government conference on August 14, Mr. Lukashenka claimed that top government officials «don’t give a damn» about his directives and said that Prime Minister Andrey Kabyakow had failed to put enough pressure on cabinet members to fulfill his orders.
On the same day, he said that Vital Vowk and Anatol Chorny would be removed from their positions as industry and construction ministers, respectively, and indicated that more changes could be made to the cabinet’s composition.
The new prime minister, Syarhey Rumas, was born in Homyel on December 1, 1969. He graduated from Yaroslavl Higher Military Finance School in 1990 and the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of Belarus’ Cabinet of Ministers in 1995.
He served in senior positions with a number of state-owned and private banks before becoming chairman at Belahraprambank, the country’s second-biggest lender, in September 2005.
Mr. Rumas was deputy prime minister in 2010-2012 before his appointment to the top post at the Development Bank of Belarus.
He has chaired the Belarusian Football Federation since April 2011.
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